MILITARY EXERCISE WITH U.S. AND NATO TROOPS PLANNED.

NATO’s Supreme Commander, Gen. John Sheehan of the U.S., participated in a conference of the Defense Ministers of Kazakstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Uzbekistan, held in Bishkek over the weekend. The meeting focused on the development of the three countries’ joint battalion and its planned exercise, CentrasBat-97, in the framework of NATO’s Partnership for Peace program. Sheehan was cited as stating that NATO and the U.S. are "seriously concerned" about ensuring security in Central Asia and are prepared to assist politically and materially in the development of the joint battalion.

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